Doncic has disappeared in 4th quarter
The Celtics and Mavericks had many storylines at the start of the series with Kyrie Irving and Kristpas Porzingis against their former teams. The other storyline was Dallas coach Jason Kidd saying Jaylen Brown is the Celtics best player while Jayson Tatum has received extreme criticism for his poor shooting performances. The best player in the series through 2 games was Luka Doncic, who is playing in his first NBA Finals has seen offensive success but struggled defensively and has not received help from the rest of his teammates. Game 3 was a different story for the MVP Candidate.
Doncic had 27 points and fouled out of the game with under 5 minutes to go in the 4th quarter. He’s has been an incredible late game performer but the NBA finals have been a different story. He has scored a total of eight points in the fourth quarter through the first three games, shooting 3-15 from the field, which is just 20%. He’s made no three-pointers and has gone 2-4 on free throws. His defense has been bad and blamed the refs for fouling out of game 3 and is one game away from elimination.
There are plenty of reasons why he has struggled, he is dealing with multiple injuries, he has carried the weight of the offense. Doncic is considered an all-time great player. For reference, Tatum has been criticized for his all-time low field goal percentage and struggles from behind the arc. Tatum has averaged 4.0 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 3 games in the fourth quarter in the 2024 NBA Finals. He delivered on the road and with Kristaps Porzingis ruled out for the game.
Check out the post game show after game 3